About

A native of Québec, Canada, HELEN SIMONEAU (Artistic Director), has been commissioned by The Juilliard School, the American Dance Festival, Oregon Ballet Theatre, the Bessie Schönberg Residency at The Yard, Springboard Danse Montréal, and the Swiss Intl. Coaching Project (SiWiC) in Zurich. She was a resident choreographer at Baryshnikov Arts Center, NYU/Tisch, Bates Dance Festival, Broadway Dance Lab, and has received fellowships from The NYU Center for Ballet and the Arts, the Bogliasco Foundation, and twice from the North Carolina Arts Council. She has also choreographed for LA-based company BODYTRAFFIC at The National Choreographic Center in Akron. Simoneau was awarded 1st place for choreography at the Intl. Solo-Tanz-Theater Festival in Stuttgart, Germany for her solo “the gentleness was in her hands” which also won The A.W.A.R.D. Show: NYC. Her work has been presented nationally and internationally at notable venues such as The Guggenheim Museum (NYC), Dance Place (DC), Joyce SoHo (NYC), Tangente (Montréal), The Aoyama Round Theatre (Tokyo), PACT-Zollverein in Essen (Germany), Athens Intl. Dance Festival (Greece), and the Shanghai Dance Festival (China). Most recently, Simoneau was awarded a Creative Arts Initiative Grant for a 3-week residency with HSDanse at the University of Buffalo.

photo by Todd Turner

Company Members

Kayla Farrish

Kayla Farrish was born and raised in Raleigh, North Carolina into a dance-loving family. She graduated from the University of Arizona in 2013 summa cum laude, and was granted the Gertrude Shurr Award for excellence in modern dance and passionate dancing. Since moving to New York, she’s had the opportunity to work with wonderful choreographers including Helen Simoneau Danse, Kate Weare Company, Aszure Barton and Artists, Gallim Dance, Chris Masters Dance, Bryn Cohn, Elena Vazintaris, Bare Dance Company, Schoen Movement Company, Matthew Westerby Dance Company, CEMA Dance, and others.

Marielis Garcia

Marielis Garciaa native New Yorker, has been a dance performance artist for over 10 years, and is director of MG DanceArts. She is currently a member of the Brian Brooks Moving Company and Helen Simoneau Danse. Garcia has had the privilege to perform and tour with Steps Repertory Ensemble (NY), Peter Kyle Dance (NY), iKapa (Cape Town), and Douglas Dunn and Dancers (NY), among others. She received her BFA in dance from Marymount Manhattan College, and is currently pursuing an MFA in Digital and Interdisciplinary Art Practice. Her work has been presented by Appalachian State University, Salem College, Howard Community College, University of North Carolina Greensboro and Bard College at Simon’s Rock. In 2014, La MaMa theater awarded Garcia with a three-week residency, supporting and presenting a new work in Spoleto, Italy, and in 2017 she was a University of North Carolina School of the Arts Choreographic Fellow. She is a 2017, 2018 and 2019 Lower Manhattan Cultural Council grant recipient. Marielis is co-director of STUFFED: Dinner and Dance, a free quarterly community event that serves a warm meal and dance performance.www.MarielisGarcia.com

Carlo Antonio Villanueva

Carlo Antonio Villanueva is a Filipino-American performing artist living and working in New York. His work in performance and choreography follows deep interests in Form and mischief. This is his first season with Helen Simoneau Danse.

Carlo has most recently worked on projects with Hollis Bartlett & Nattie Trogdon, Christopher Williams, and Moriah Evans. He has also been a member of the Bill T. Jones/ Arnie Zane Company for three years, through which he collaborated in the creation of large-scale performance productions; toured repertory programs nationally and internationally; and taught master classes in New York and abroad.

Carlo’s choreography has been supported and included by AUNTS, Bethany Arts Community, the Brooklyn Arts Exchange UPSTART Program, Brooklyn Studios for Dance, Gibney Dance, Knockdown Center, Movement Research, Recess, and NYU Tisch Dance. He was a 2015 Teaching Artist in Residence at Stony Brook University, and was supported by a Foundation for Contemporary Art Emergency Grant for a collaboration with Miriam Gabriel in 2017.

Carlo also teaches Dance at Mason Gross School of the Arts at Rutgers University, and is the Company Manager of Kyle Marshall Choreography.

Claire Westby

Claire Westby is originally from Minnesota and now resides in Brooklyn. She holds a BFA in Dance from Tisch School of the Arts NYU and also studied at Salzburg Experimental Academy of Dance (SEAD). She has taught dance at Tisch School of the Arts NYU, Columbia College Chicago, Gibney Dance, Mark Morris Dance Center, St. Paul Ballet, Steps on Broadway, and Jacob’s Pillow. In addition to dancing with Helen Simoneau Danse, Ms. Westby also performs with Liz Gerring Dance Company. Claire has also performed in and helped create original roles in works by Gwen Welliver, Benjamin Kimitch, Russell Stuart Lilie, John Jasperse, Cherylyn Lavagnino, Hollis Bartlett, and RoseAnne Spradlin.

Collaborators

David Ferri (Lighting Designer) has worked with prominent choreographers such as Pina Bausch, Shen Wei, Doug Varone, Yin Mei, Eiko and Koma, Jane Comfort, David Rousseve, Jody Sperling and Ballet Preljocaj. He has been the Production Manager for the prestigious American Dance Festival since 1996 training upcoming designers in America. Recipient of 1987-1988 BESSIE AWARD for his design of Doug Varone’s “Straits”, and 2000-2001 BESSIE AWARD for Sustained Achievement in Lighting Design. Mr Ferri is the resident Lighting Designer -Technical Director for The Vassar College Dance Department, Mr. Ferri was also resident lighting designer and technical director at PS 122 from 1985-1991. Mr. Ferri lives in New York between his travels and projects.

Nathalie Joachim (Composer) Recognized for her versatile and innovative performing and composing, Nathalie Joachim has become a notable figure in the international music community. Critics hail the New York City based artist for creating “a unique blend of classical music, hip-hop, electronic programming and soulful vocals reminiscent of neo-R&B stars like Erykah Badu.” (The Wall Street Journal) Ms. Joachim is co-founder of the critically acclaimed urban art pop duo, Flutronix, known for bringing their ingenious stagecraft and technical prowess to stages world-wide. She was also recently appointed the new flutist of three-time Grammy winning contemporary chamber ensemble, eighth blackbird. Other performance experience consists of an impressive range including Miguel Zenón, Vampire Weekend, the International Contemporary Ensemble, Richard Reed Parry and Dan Deacon. Ms. Joachim was a faculty member at The Juilliard School’s Music Advancement Program (MAP) and is regularly engaged by elite educational institutions nationwide. Upcoming 2015-16 projects include commissions from Helen Simoneau Danse and Park Avenue Armory’s Under Construction program, as well as the release of a new Flutronix EP. Ms. Joachim is the only person to have successfully completed the MAP, Pre-College, and College Division programs at The Juilliard School. She completed her graduate degree studies at The New School in audio production and sound design. nathaliejoachim.com